Washington DC Weekend!

Last weekend I jumped on a plane and traveled all the way across the country to Washington, DC! For those who don’t know, we actually lived in DC before we moved to Seattle – back in 2010/2011. We only lived there for a year, and if the job opportunity for Casey hadn’t popped up, I’m sure we’d still be there.

Last fall, my little sis moved to DC and I’ve been dying to get out for a visit ever since. And so last weekend as a belated birthday celebration to both of us (two February babies!), I headed out to see her for a wonderful long weekend.

I got in late on Friday night, so we just headed back to her apartment to settle in and catch up. The alarm clock came early on Saturday (especially given the time change), and the three of us were out the door to DC’s Orangetheory studio!

Sarah and Wyllie started going to OT a few months ago, and it’s been so fun to be able to text and talk about doing the same workouts on opposite ends of the country. The class was really hard, the music was awesome, and it was such a treat to all be there together.

Afterward, it was a well-earned brunch. Delicious biscuit egg sandwiches from A Baked Joint (sister restaurant to Baked & Wired – a favorite cupcake spot from back in the day!). It was DELICIOUS, and exactly what I needed after a hard workout.

From there our only plan was to walk, metro, eat, and explore. I know people in DC complain about the Metro, but man it is such a GIFT! What I would give for decent public transportation in Seattle. It was so nice to never need to drive while we were there.

We headed over to Union Market, which is right around the corner from my sister’s office. I got to see her work space, and now it’s so nice to be able to picture where she is every day.

We walked through Union Market – this incredible food market with endless stalls of delicious delicacies. If it hadn’t been so crowded I definitely would have stopped for lunch #2. I did stop at the local kombucha stand for a drink and picked up this delicious brew from Craft Kombucha. It was super tasty, and I love their logo and look!

From there we headed back to the apartment to relax for a bit before taking the dog out for a long walk. We walked all around Columbia Heights and enjoyed beautiful sunshine and blue skies. My sister’s dog, Darcy, is literally the cutest dog I’ve ever seen. It was so nice to get some good snuggles from her.

After all that working (not to mention the morning workout!) we were all starving again by like 4pm, so we decided to walk to an early dinner. We ended up at The Airedale – a really cute local joint with a great menu and lots of soccer fans. These were the best fried pickles of my life – perfectly done so that the pickles melted in your mouth and the breading didn’t fall off in the first bite.

Followed by a delicious veggie sausage platter that included two veggie dogs, homemade saurkraut, greens, pretzel bread, beer cheese, and spicy mustard. Yes please a million times.

It was so delicious, and such a treat to get to relax and hang out with two of my favorite people that I don’t see nearly enough.

On Sunday we had a nice relaxing morning at home – starting with breakfast made by Wyllie. Made a note to get these frozen hash browns the next time I’m at Trader Joe’s – delish.

After cleaning up and getting ready, Sarah and I were off to Drybar! I’ve never done something like it before, and she convinced me to try it with her.

We went in with gross ponytails, and left with nice sleek hair! What a treat! Also, we didn’t realize we were matching until we took this picture.

Wyllie picked us up after our appointments, and we all headed into Virginia for the afternoon. First stop, Old Town – our old neighborhood, and one of my favorite places on earth. We walked down our old street and found my old rowhouse. It actually felt really emotional, and I could have easily stood there and stared at it for an hour (the good news is that I didn’t actually do that). That little yellow house held so many good memories for me and Casey, and it was such a big year for us.

We walked our old daily walking loop, and I felt a cheesy and emotional again, as it made me think of the hundreds of miles we walked that same path with our dogs. It made me feel sad to think of how many times I’d been there with Huey, and how much I’ve missed him this year.

We walked up to the waterfront and explored, and it brought back so many wonderful memories. The sunshine felt so healing, and I was pretty ready for Casey and Indy and the boys to all get on a plane and come join me forever.

Eventually all that walking turned into extreme hunger again, so we stopped at SweetGreen for a delicious lunch. Thank goodness this wasn’t there when I lived there, or I would have been there every day.

We got to visit with my great friend Ashley and her family before heading out to Falls Church to visit with two other friends from our DC days. I feel so lucky to have moved so many times and still hung on to many friendships from far away.

We headed back home for another dog walk, more local kombucha tasting, and to get ready for dinner.

Dinner was at Momfuku DC, which had been on my list since the minute my sister moved there. I had high expectations, and they were absolutely met. We started with shiitake buns, and the most amazing crispy sweet and sour eggplant of all time. When I die I want to eat nothing but that.

For my entrée, I got the veggie ramen. The noodles were so perfect and it was topped with crispy chickpeas. I ate it all and then literally drank every drop of the broth. No shame.

The food was delicious but the highlight of dinner was getting to catch up with my old friend, Blake. So nice to have so many people I love all living in one place!

Monday was my last day, and since Wyllie had to work Sarah and I planned to just hang out and explore a bit more. We started with a sunny walk with Darcy around the ‘hood.

Next up, we headed up to the National Zoo! Somehow in my year of living there I had never been. We stopped in a fun little bakery across the street and grabbed cake pops as a reward for our million miles of walking.

After the zoo we had time for one more adventure – a quick stroll around the National Mall. Casey and I came up here all the time when we lived in Virginia – we’d run or ride our bikes up the Mt. Vernon Trail and across the bridge. Such a beautiful spot!

We walked and talked with my friend Lindsay and her beautiful baby girl. It was a great last few hours in one of my favorite cities.

And then it was time for me to head to the airport for the long voyage home. I was really lucky to get direct flights on both legs of my trip. After six (!) hours in the air, I saw the familiar twinkle of the space needle and my home city.

So many thanks to Casey for making it possible for me to leave – he had his hands full with tackling work and the boys together. And a million thanks to Sarah and Wyllie for letting me crash their futon for the weekend. I can’t wait to get back to DC with the while family sooner than later!

Loved this post, reminded me of reading your blog when you lived there. Is there where you were hit by that car? That would be an emotional site to visit too. It looks like you had an amazing trip. I want to go to all those restaurants now! I’m so jealous you’re so close with your sister, I wish I had that bond with my big sis. xo

My senior year of college, I interned across the street from Baked and Wired, and was a little obsessed! They had the best lattes, strawberry cupcakes, and granola, mmmm. Definitely ate up a significant portion of my internship income lol. I had no idea they had a restaurant though, I’ll definitely be going there if I ever make it back to DC. I’m glad you had such a fun trip!!

Hi Emily! I am in Arlington, VA and remember reading your blog when you were in Old Towne too! so glad you had a wonderful weekend with your sister! I still haven’t been to Momfuku and need to go! And those veggie sausages! Need to try those too! I have 2 toddler boys too and don’t get out much! LOL

I love DC! My favorite city to visit, I lived there one summer during college and I get nostalgic every time I visit. A friend just moved there so I’m going without kids next month and SO excited to do that! I’ll add your restaurants to my list. I’m lucky that I’m only a 6 hour drive away!

I lived in downtown Seattle for years and never had a car, so it’s interesting you comment on the lack of decent public transit. While it could be better, your comment shows how little you’ve tried using the public transit and aren’t aware how good it is compared to many cities.

Actually, we spent our first four years here as a one car family, with Casey almost entirely relying on the bus! Having lived in a city like DC with a Metro system, I do think Seattle’s public transport is pretty terrible. The buses generally sit in the same traffic as the cars, with the exception of some dedicated bus lanes. There are big plans for the Light Rail eventually, but it will take close to 30 years to complete (although we are already paying for it in our property taxes!). I’m sure our experiences have been quite different though, if you lived right downtown, and we have always lived in North Seattle or the ‘burbs (Kirkland).